Slide valve



May 2, 1950 B. N. ASHTON i 2,506,129

SLIDE VALVE Filed May l0, 1945 Patented May 2, 1950 SLIDE VALVE Benjamin N. Ashton, Kingston, N. Y., assignor to Electrol Incorporated, Kingston, N. Y., a corporation of Delaware Application May 10, 1945, Serial No. 592,933

1 claim. 1

This invention relates to valves, and it relates particularly to an improved form of selector valve for use in hydraulic systems for aircraft and the like.

The valves and other fittings that are used in aircraft hydraulic systems are subjected to relatively high pressures, for example 1,000 to 1,500 pounds per square inch, and, therefore, the elements of such systems ordinarily must be constructed of materials capable of withstanding these pressures. Steel or iron valves are usually quite bulky and heavy and thus add greatly to the weight of the hydraulic system. Aluminum cased valves have been used very widely in order to save weight, but such valves have been fitted with steel valve plugs and valve seats in order to render them capable of withstanding the conditions of their use. The steel parts require expensive machining operations in their manufacture and precision fitting within the lightweight casings in order to prevent leakage around the valve seats and stems.

All of these operations add greatly to the cost of the valves and decreases in weight are made only at greatly increased cost.

An object of the present invention is to provide lightweight selector and other types of light metal cased valves in which few machining operations are required in the manufacture and fitting of the Wear-resisting parts.

Another object of the invention is to provide valves having easily machined wear-resisting parts that are readily fitted in light-weight casings.

A further object of the invention is to provide a lightweight valve having separate valve and casing elements that may be readily assembled and rendered leak-proof.

Other objects of the invention will become apparent from the following description of a typical device embodying the present invention.

Valves of the type embodying the present invention are characterized by a casing formed of aluminum or other light weight material having a sleeve mounted therein formed of a cast ferrous metal known as Meehanite which has characterlstics similar to tool steel in so far as crystalline structure is concerned, but has a higher carbon content rendering it readily cast. Meehanite in certain of its forms is entirely pearlitic or sorbitic and can be machined readily.

More particularly, the valve sleeve is provided with inner and outer flanges forming, respectively, valve seats and partitions for separating the ports in the casing and confining the liquid to flow through the valve seat anges. The sleeve construction being in contact with the ,casing only at the exterior flanges can readily be inserted in the casing and sealed thereto by means of suitable rubbery sealing rings mounted in grooves in the flanges opposing said casing. The sleeve can be of relatively thin Wall construction except at the Iianges, inasmuch as the walls of the sleeve are perforated to permit passage of the liquid and are subjected only to axial tension or compressive stresses.

The valve seats may be of any desired type, but preferably they are cylindrical openings for receiving piston-like valve plugs mounted on a. plunger for movement together axially of the sleeve. The ends of the plunger are received in annular plugs in the ends of the casing and leakage is prevented therebetween by means of suitable groove and rubbery sealing ring assemblies.

Valves of the type described generally above are capable of withstanding high pressures and handling large volumes of liquid without being excessively heavy or bulky, and they may be produced Without complicated and expensive machining operations or without the necessity of precision fitting, except between the valve plugs and valve seats. Moreover, the fitting of the valve and valve seat is greatly simplified inasmuch as this operation may be accomplished before the elements are assembled in the casing.

For a better understanding of the present invention, reference may be had to the accompanying drawing in which:

Figure 1 is a plan view of a typical form of valve embodying the present invention;

Figure 2 is a view in end elevation of the valve; and

Figure 3 is a view in cross section taken on line 3-3 of Figure l.

The form of valve chosen for purposes of illustration is a four-port selector valve which may be utilized, for example, for controlling the fiow of liquid to, and the discharge of liquid from, a hydraulic motor, such as, for example, a jack for operating retractable landing gear or wing flaps on an airplane. The valve can be used in many types of hydraulic systems and thus is not restricted to the above mentioned use.

The valve illustrated includes a generally cylindrical casing I0 which is provided at its upper surface with a plurality of tapped bosses ll, I2, I3, and I4, which may be utilized for connecting the casing to a panel or other device in position for convenient use. As best shown in Figures 1 and 3, the casing I 0 is provided on one side `unitary valve assembly 2|.

with a pair of couplings I 5 and IB forming the ports that may be connected to a return conduit and a pressure conduit (not shown), respectively.

On the underside of the casing and between the ports I5 and I6 are two other ports Il and I8 which may be connected respectively to other conduits for connection to the pressure sides of motors or the like. The ports I5, Il, I8, and It are spaced apart axially' of the casing IU so as to permit them to be separated and the ilow of liquid therethrough controlled by the valve arrangement described hereinafter. Preferably, the casing I is formed of lightweight metal such as aluminum, magnesium, or in some cases, of plastic when high pressure fluids are not to be used in the system.

Inasmuch as such lightweight materials do not have good wear-resisting properties and thus valves made wholly of this material may leak after they have been in service for a period of time, the cooperating valve elements are formed of a harder and more durable material.

As shown in Figure 3, the casing I0 is adapted to receive a sleeve IS that preferably is formed of the ferrous material known as Meehanite which is a form of cast iron having the properties similar to carbon tool steel. Meehanite is readily cast without being excessively brittle or so hard as to prevent easy machining thereof. The exact characteristics of Meehanite will vary, depending upon its uses, but generally speaking, it is a more homogeneous iron alloy than cast iron, being made up substantially entirely of pearlite or sorbite or a mixture of lpearlite and sorbite and having a relatively high carbon content, thatis, between 7 and 81/ the carbon being distributed uniformly through the matrixof pearlite or sorbite.

The sleeve I9 can be cast generally in its final form and little extra finishing other than honing of certain parts thereof, to be described, is required.

The sleeve I9, as illustrated, includes three annular ring portions I9a, I9b, I9c which are connected by thinner perforated web portions I9d and I9e. The web portions ISd and ISKe connect the annular portions at about their midpoints so that clearance is left between the webs ISd and Ille and the wall of the casing Ill. The

thickened annular portions project on opposite sides of these webs to form annular anges projecting inwardly and outwardly from the sleeve.

The thickened annular portions I9a, I9b, and I9c are interposed between each of the pairs of ports I and II, I1 and I8, and I8 and I6 and are arranged in sealing engagement with the casing I0 to prevent leakage of liquid from one port to another around the outside of the sleeve. This sealing may be accomplished by providing the exterior ilange portions with peripheral grooves I9f, for example, in which are mounted toroidal rubbery sealing rings which engage the wall of the casing I0. The exterior surfaces of the annular portions I9a to I 9c may be ground to comparative smoothness so as to seat within the casing I0, but a precision flt is not required inasmuch as the rubbery rings 20 provide effective seals.

The inner surfaces of the annular rings I9a, I9b, and I9c are honedto precise dimensions inasmuch asthey form the seats for the pistonlike valve plugs 2Ia., 2l b, and 2Ic which are connected by means of stems 2l d and 2Ie to form a The valve elements 2Ia, 2lb, and 2| c and the connecting stems may be formed of steel and are honed and ground to a, precision iit in their respective seats in order to prevent leakage therebetween. The valve elements are spaced a greater distance apart than the valve seat rings 92a to i90 so that upon endwise shifting movement of the valve assembly 2i, only one of the valve elements can be fully seated at a time. Inasmuch as the valve plugs 2 Ia and 2Ie are both disposed outwardly of their respective valve seats, when the valve plug 2lb is fully seated, it is possible to direct the fluid either through the supply port IS to both of the ports I l and I3 or to only the port I8, as desired, by shifting the valve assembly 2i axially, or to connect one or both of the ports Il and I8 to the port I5. f

In order to guide the valve assembly 2l in vproper relationship to the sleeve is, the ends oi l the valve assembly 2i may be provided with cylindrical plug portions 22 and 23 which are threaded or otherwise connected to the member 2| and are received in suitable sleeves 24! and 25 respectively that are threaded into the opposite ends of the casing I il. These plugs 26 and 25 as well as the cylindrical members 22 and 23 may be formed of aluminum or other light metal in order to reduce the weight of the valve.

TheY plugs 22 and 23 may be provided with peripheral y,grooves 22a and 23a, respectively, for receiving K rubbery sealing rings 26 and 21 to prevent leakage around the plugs.

The valve assembly 2l may be shifted endwise in any desired manner, for example, by means of cams or other actuating mechanism. As illustrated, the valve assembly 2| may be shifted by.

means of a lever 28 which is connected by means of a pivot pin 29 to an arm 30 which is formed integral with, or otherwise connected to, the

casing I0. The lever 28 is further pivotally connected by means of a pivot pin 3I to a bifurcated portion 32 on the end of the cylindrical plug 23. The lever 28 may be provided with a plurality of notches 28a, 28h, and 28o which are selectively engageable with a pin 33 slidably supported in a bore or recess 30a in the arm 30 and urged outwardly by means of the spring 34. The pin 33 has a rounded nose 33a which may engage in any of the notches 28a to 28e to retainthe lever in any of three positions. These positions correspond to the axial position of the valve as sembly 2l necessary to seat the plugs 2 Ia to 2 Ic in their seats lea to i9c, respectively.l An elongated slot in the lever'28 may be provided for receiving the pin 3I to prevent the lever from binding.

` V'Ihe above described valve construction is light. in weight inasmuch as the major portion of the three zones, and the sealingrings 20 provide an eiective seal With a relative coarse fit between the sleeve and the casing. The valve assembly ZI may be iltted to the sleeve I 9 before it is mounted in. the casing and, therefore, the Whole valve may be p'roduoed with a minimum of machining operations and may be assembled with amount of skill.

It will be understood that the valve is susceptible to considerable modiication both in the number of ports and in the number of valve elements therein. Moreover, the type of valve plugs and valve seats may 4be modied as desired for various purposes without departing from the invention.

Therefore, the form of valve described above should be considered as illustrative of the invention and not as limiting the scope of the following claim.

Iclaim:

A selector valve comprisingk a sleeve of hard wear-resistant metal having a plurality of radially aligned inwardly and outwardly projecting annular flanges, said inwardly projecting flanges forming axially aligned cylindrical valve seats, said annular anges being connected at about their midpoints by thinner perforated web portions and said outwardly projecting iianges having circumferential grooves therein, a tubular casing of light weight metal engaging said outwardly projecting ilanges on said sleeve, rubbery sealing rings in the grooves of said ilanges sealing said anges to said casing, a valve plunger of hard wear-resistance metal extending through and movable axially of said aligned seats and having enlarged spaced apart cylindrical valve plugs selectively engageable in said valve seats,

a minimum cylindrical plunger portions of light weight metal fixed to opposite ends of said valve plunger and provided with grooves thereon, sealing rings in said grooves, means in said casing forming ports on opposite sides of said outwardly projecting flanges, annular plugs of light weight metal threaded into opposite ends of said casing slidably receiving the cylindrical plunger portions in sealing engagement with the rings in the grooves of said plunger portions, said plugs having thin perforated tubular portions thereon engaging opposite ends of said sleeve to retain it against axial movement in said casing, and means on said casing for sliding said plunger axially to engage said plugs selectively with said valve seats.

BENJAMIN N. ASHTON.

REFERENCES CITED The following .references are of record in the ille of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,099,483I Bayles June 9, 1914 1,172,595 Heath Feb. 22, 1916 2,184,793 Clench Dec. 26, 1939 2,342,450 Campbell Feb. 22, 1944 2,380,836 Gottlieb July 31, 1945 2,396,643 De Ganahl Mar. 19,r 1946 2,414,451 Christensen 1 Jan. 21, 1947 2,445,855 Majneri July 27, 1948 

